ABOUT THIS ALBUM

Album Notes

YOU CAN EARN QUALITY RELAXATION TIME OR ROMANCE SOMEONE YOU LOVE BY WITH SONGS OF THE MUSE

The Brobdingnagian Bards rose to international fame in just three years due to the success of this CD. SONGS OF THE MUSE is an instrumental album filled with nearly sixty minutes of beautiful Celtic Renaissance melodies instrumentals. But it was the initial release of "TOLKIEN (The Hobbit & Lord of the Rings)" that guided their success.

"TOLKIEN" topped the MP3.com Celtic charts for 32 weeks in 2001. This success led to over a million downloads of that one song and launched their career. But "Tolkien" wasn't the only hit from Songs of the Muse. Their adapation of "Greensleeves" held the #1 slot on MP3.com's Renaissance charts for sixteen straight weeks in 2000. Turlough O'Carolan's masterpieces, "Eleanor Plunkett" and "Carolan's Concerto" likewise topped the charts. But the most popular songs on the album are the original songs, like "Shepherd's Serenade", "Valeria", and "Maids in the Meadow".

The music is beautiful and inviting, and no doubt one of the most romantic albums you will hear this year. If you enjoy romantic instrumental Celtic or Renaissance music, you will fall in love with this album again and again.

ABOUT THE BROBDINGNAGIAN BARDS

The Brobdingnagian Bards (pronounced brAHb'ding-näg-EE-en) are The Original Celtic Renaissance music group from Austin, Texas offering free Celtic mp3 downloads. They perform a unique style of music combining Scottish and Irish folk songs with music inspired by the Lord of the Rings, performed on non-traditional instruments--autoharp, recorder, and mandolin.

In just five years, they've completed six studio albums and performed coast-to-coast. Ask their fans, and they'll tell you The Bards are just plain "fun!" Which makes sense since, after all, they just love the music.

CD REVIEWS OF BEAUTIFUL CELTIC RENAISSANCE MUSIC

"the perfect background for an intimate recitation of Christopher Marlowe's Passionate Shepherd To His Love"
-Traditions Magazine

...the Austin-based Bards are masters of traditional folk. Like a Celt-Renaissance They Might Be Giants, [their] albums are equal parts lilting melodies and good humor. Their song "Tolkien (The Hobbit & Lord of the Rings)" is an unexpected MP3 hit." -Austin Chronicle

I am always in need of something that inspires the world of fae. And this cd gives a portal into another world where the fields are covered in fairy lights and kings are romancing their queens. I bought the cd becuase I am getting married and we are of pagan mind and so we wanted soemthing to express everything that we hold dear. thank you for bring the veil closer to human kind

Apparently you can use the words "Celtic" and "Texas" in the same sentence without your head exploding. I'm surprised. However, the Bards (clearly a witty pair based on the text of their website) truly play with their whole souls engaged. I discovered the Bards during the old days of MP3.com, and have since purchased several of their albums. Songs of the Muse is undoubtedly my favorite. This is in part because, with the greatest respect to the Bards, their vocals are not as strong as their instruments, and this album is entirely instrumental. On the surface it makes very pleasant background music, but their interpretations of classic works are truly heartfelt and at times quite complex and make an engaging listen time after time. The steady strumming of the autoharp lulls the listening and at times the recorder pricks up the hairs on the back of my neck! Take this album for a country drive and see if it doesn't make you want to circle the county (and the disk) again and again!

This CD really takes you back to the time of renaissance. It totaly creates the perfect ambiance for any re enactment or costume party or just to sit in a candle filled room and relax to the pleasent sounds of long ago...

This is a Great instrumental celtic CD! The autoharp and recorder are Very well played! If you get a chance to see Marc and Andrew live, do so and you Will Not be disappointed! If you can't see them live, buy ALL their CD's and you will have a beautiful mix of celtic, Irish, and humerous music! If you get the music from CDBABY, it will arrive much faster than you expect! (something about a private jet was in their remarks?) Thank you CDBABY!